The Roaring Fire of Skyclan
by Nightshade-Hemlock
Summary: Warriors AU. After the death of Tigerstar and the defeat of Bloodclan, Whitestar and the other leaders and medicine cats are visited by Starclan to foretell the threat of Twolegs coming to the forest. Starclan reveals the truth about Skyclan's existence and gives a way for the clans to survive in a new land. FEM!Fireheart, Skyclan Cat Fireheart, and Warrior Scourge.
1. Chapter 1

Chapter 1. The Prophecy

Whitestar's P.O.V

It was dark, and he was alone. Whitestar looked around him into the pitch black nothingness that surrounded him. Suddenly, a light shined above him, Whitestar snapped his head up and saw a bright star. He swallowed nervously, then the star began to glow brighter and brighter. Whitestar looked down and closed his eyes to avoid the burning light in his eyes. Then the light faded behind his eyelids and reopened them. To his shock, he was at the Fourtrees, but he wasn't alone. He looked and saw the other leaders of the clans and their medicine cats.

"Whitestar?" A small voice mewed behind him. He turned and saw Cinderpelt, the young she-cat looked just as confused as him. Then the other leaders and medicine cats also began to voice their concerns. Whitestar sighed and made his way to the group of cats.

"Blackstar, Leopardstar, Tallstar." Whitestar acknowledged as he and Cinderpelt approached. The others looked at him.

"Starclan seems to have brought us together." Tallstar responded solemnly, "It must be important"

Leopardstar's tail lashed, "Then where are they?"

Just then the scenery around them changed, the hollow was now filled with cats. Upon the Great Rock were three cats that Whitestar had never seen before. A yowl grabbed the attention of all in the hollow. Entering the Fourtrees was a large group of cats, among them were kits and elders. Leading the group was a pale gray tom with white patches and stunning light blue eyes. He stopped just before Whitestar and the others in front of the Great Rock.

_"Cloudstar." A dark ginger tom mewed from atop the Great Rock, "I wasn't sure Skyclan would come, due to the Twolegs in your territory."_

_"That is why my clan is here, Redstar, Skyclan's territory is being destroyed by Twolegs. We plead that the other clans give us some of their territory so that Skyclan may live. Please, we don't have anywhere to go. The Twolegs have destroyed our camp and prey has fled from our territory." Cloudstar pleaded, the leader dipped his head towards the others._

_"Shadowclan refuses." A beautiful cream-brown she-cat snarled. "Leafbare is almost upon us, we can't share any part of our territory."_

_"Windclan refuses as well. Our territory can't sustain cats made for the forest, we also can't let your clan take fresh-kill that rightfully belongs to Windclan cats" a dark gray tom added._

_Cloudstar turned to the last leader, Riverclan's, "Please Birchstar, Riverclan only uses the river to hunt." _

_Birchstar gave a pitiful look to the leader, "I'm sorry Cloudstar. But Riverclan will also have to refuse."_

_Anger flashed across Cloudstar's, "So you all are condemning a clan to death? There has always been five clans!" _

_The Shadowclan leader shook her head, "Look around us, Cloudstar, there are only four trees not five here at the gathering place. The sky above us is clear, Starclan have voiced their opinion. Maybe there was only ever supposed to be four clans."_

_"Your excuse for this is based on the trees?" Cloudstar responded in disbelief. He looked around to the other leaders and clans, horror in his eyes. The Skyclan leader's fur began to rise as his clanmates begged for the other clans to not force them out. _

_In a rage filled voice Cloudstar spoke again, "Fine. Skyclan will leave the forest, as the rest of you have wronged us." He paused, "Don't forget Redstar, a large portion of Thunderclan's territory was Skyclan's, Darkstar was a coward for giving it to your clan."_

_The Skyclan leader spun and motioned for his clan to follow, but before they could leave a medicine cat from another clan rushed forward._

_"Cloudstar wait!" It was a dark tabby tom. The gray and white leader paused before glaring at the tom. _

_"What is it Kestrelwing?" Cloudstar growled, his eyes dark._

_The medicine cat froze momentarily before speaking, "Your kits are too young to travel, Cloudstar, and you know it. Let them stay here, Thunderclan will raise them, they will be safe and fed during Leaf-bare and they won't be at risk of dying on a journey."_

_Cloudstar turned to face the medicine cat completely, but before he say anything a she-cat stepped forward, behind her was a warrior who was guarding two small kits. The kits were no more than a moon old. _

_"I doubt Redstar would let a Skyclan cat join his clan." The she-cat spat, her tail was lashing._

_Kestrelwing dipped his head to her, "I don't agree with Redstar's choice, and I doubt Starclan agrees. But, Redstar would understand and give shelter to you and your kits, Birdflight. I promise that you and the kits will be welcomed in Thunderclan."_

_Birdflight looked at Cloudstar with worry, "He's right, they'll never make the journey."_

_Cloudstar nodded before touching noses with his mate, "Then I'll wait for you until we meet again."_

_As Cloudstar and Birdflight gave their goodbyes Kestrelwing and another Thunderclan warrior took the kits and motioned for Birdflight to join them. She took the kit Kestrelwing was carrying and followed the Thunderclan warrior towards the other Thunderclan cats._

_"May Starclan guide your path and follow Skyclan to your new home." Kestrelwing mewed, but Cloudstar only growled._

_"StarClan may go where they please. They have betrayed SkyClan. From this day on, I will have nothing more to do with our ancestors. StarClan allowed the Twolegs to destroy our home. They look down on us now and let the moon go on shining while the clans drive us out. They said there would always be five clans, but they lied. SkyClan will never look to the stars again." Cloudstar swore before leaving the Gathering, his clan following_

The cats then disappeared and Whitestar and the others were alone again. Whitestar glanced at his fellow leaders and the medicine cats, they all had the expression of disbelief and shock. Whitestar couldn't believe it, the clan he had sworn his life to had helped to condemn an entire clan to exile and subsequently death. He looked at Cinderpelt again and saw that she was shaking, whether it was from anger or disbelief he couldn't tell. Then the scenery around them changed again. It was now Sun-high but they still remained in the hollow. There were now five cats that Whitestar had never seen before standing on Great Rock but this time they were looking straight at Whitestar and the others.

_"Its upon the clans" a black she-cat with green eyes stated._

Leopardstar leapt forward, fur bristling, "What do you mean, 'Its upon the clans'?"

A silvery-gray tom stepped forward, Whitestar could tell instantly that he was Riverclan.

_"Step down, Leopardstar, for we are the founders of the clans" _

They all looked at the cats with disbelief, these were the first leaders of the clan? That would make the tom Riverstar. He looked down upon them, wisdom in his eyes. Then a bulky orange tom came forward.

_"The punishment for abandoning a clan has come to the remaining clans." The tom spoke, "The Twolegs will take from the clans just as they did Skyclan. Nothing will stop them."_

_"There were always supposed to be five clans, and now there will be again." A lithe brown she-cat mewed._

_"When the Twolegs come and prey kills its devourers, follow the river to it's beginning and there the clans will reunite with Skyclan." The black she-cat stated._

_Then a pale gray tom with clear blue eyes moved forward, "My clan no longer holds hatred to the other clans. Ever since they learned to live in their new territory the hatred and rage they held towards the other clans faded. They are hesitant. My clan fears being forced out of their territory again. This is the clans chance at redemption, to undo what the old leaders did."_

**_"Look for the cat who's pelt burns like fire and eyes like the forest." _**

The ground underneath them began to shake and the Fourtrees disappeared. Whitestar looked around to the others. They were surrounded by darkness, then Tallstar stepped forward. "Theres a cat I once met who matches that description."

"What do you mean, Tallstar?" Mudfur asked, the medicine cat was looking at the Windclan leader with confusion. The old leader sighed and motioned for them all to come closer. They settled in a circle and gave Tallstar their attention. He glanced at Barkface for a moment before speaking.

"Many moons ago when I was still an apprentice my father Sandgorse was killed in a collapsed tunnel because he saved a loner that was apart of a group that visited Windclan during Green-Leaf. At the time my clan thought that the loner shouldn't be blamed for Sandgorse's death and the loner, Sparrow, and his group left. I was among the few in the clan who believed that Sandgorse would have still been alive if it hadn't been for Sparrow. At the time I was considered as an outsider in my own clan. Shortly after I became a warrior, I left my clan to get revenge on Sparrow." Tallstar paused to take in a deep breath.

"When I came to the Twoleg Place, I didn't know how to survive outside a clan. I managed to catch a rat but became ill after eating it. I collapsed and when I awoke, I was in a Twoleg den trapped inside a cage. But there was another cat there, Sunblaze. I was confused as to why he had a warrior name but then he told me that he was from a place called Skyclan. He got me out of the cage and told me that if I could take him to the river in clan territory that he would help me find Sparrow. I agreed and we spent several moons together, it was during this time did Sunblaze teach me how to let go of my anger towards Sparrow and in the end I didn't kill him. We returned to the forest and I offered Sunblaze a place in Windclan with me. He refused saying that he was born to be a Skyclan cat, not a Windclan cat. Sunblaze asked me to not tell any cat that he had met me or about Skyclan. But, he did say that if I wasn't allowed back into Windclan that I would just need to follow the river and he would be there. I never saw him again and I kept my promise… until now." Tallstar finished, he was looking at his paws.

Whitestar was in shock, not only had Tallstar planned to kill a cat but that he had left his clan to do it. He wondered how Tallstar even became deputy or even leader, but then realized it was probably allowed by Starclan to establish a connection between Skyclan and the other clans.

Blackstar spoke up then, "You said that he matched the description, correct?"

Tallstar nodded, "Sunblaze was a fiery ginger tom with green eyes. But, the question is, do we leave before the Twolegs come or wait?"

Whitestar pondered before Runningnose voiced his opinion.

"I would try to convince the clans to leave before to avoid unnecessary danger. But, they might refuse if there's nothing to flee from. Also, the black she-cat said that we would leave when the Twolegs come and prey kills it's devourers." Runningnose mewed, the wet-nosed tom was right.

Leopardstar stepped forward, "If we order our clan to leave then they'll have to. After all leader's word is law."

Whitestar shook his head at the dappled Riverclan leader. She shot him a glare but Cinderpelt cut her off.

"Ever since Tigerstar and Brokenstar cats have been wary of leaders who try and force them to do certain things. Leaving the forest would be one of those." Cinderpelt explained, Whitestar agreed with his medicine cat.

Ever since the war between Lionclan and Bloodclan, the clans have been suffering even after Tigerstar's death and Bone's demise after being swarmed by apprentices. Whitestar shivered, the Bloodclan leader had taken his first life, by the time he had been sent back by Starclan apprentices from almost every clan had attacked Bone at once. When the warriors had managed to pull the apprentices off of the tom there was just a mangled body. Whitestar could still remember the words of Onewhisker, Gorsepaw's mentor. He claimed it was his revenge for Bone being the one to kill Tigerstar and not Gorsepaw. Whitestar couldn't blame the apprentice at the time, Tigerstar had murdered Gorsepaw's mother in cold blood.

But, even after Bone's death, Bloodclan cats still attacked clan patrols and stole prey. They had managed to drive the fake clan out time and time again but it was taking its toll on the clans. Whitestar stood, the other leaders looked at him in confusion.

"When the Twolegs come, we'll be ready. All the clans will leave but until then prepare your clans. If we aren't ready for when they come, we're good as dead." Whitestar said strongly. The other leaders and medicine cats nodded and got to their paws. But Barkface looked around confused.

"We're still in Starclan, usually after Starclan's done speaking we awake." Barkface muttered worried. They then realized that the Windclan cat was right. But then they heard a snort. Whitestar turned and saw nothing until.

_"Look up you fools."_ A voice called from the trees. They looked and there in a tree laying on a low branch was Cloudstar. He looked much healthier than he did when they saw the memory of Skyclan's exile. The blue-eyed tom stared at them before saying,

**"Wake up." **


	2. Chapter 2

_**A/N Thank you all for the reviews and favorites for this story! I just wanted to explain a few things about this story. First of all; Jake and his brood are all apart of Skyclan under new names, Ruby is Pebblesplash, Socks is Magpiewing, Scourge is Iceclaw, and Princess is Fawnstep. Many things are different due to Fireheart never joining Thunderclan, this includes Brightheart remaining as Lostface and Gorsepaw (now Gorsetail) being alive. This is also set around Firestar's Quest. I would have updated last week but I've been busy with school. Hopefully, I'll be able to update again next weekend. Also, I'll be uploading the Skyclan Allegiances after this.**_

* * *

Fireheart's P.O.V

Rain hit down on the warrior's den as a light storm swept by. Fireheart sat by the entrance of the den watching it fall. She sighed at the sight of Sharpclaw entering camp with his patrol, all of them were soaked. The patrol was carrying a large amount of prey, they all split up and took the prey to the other dens. Fireheart briefly tensed when a weight leaned against her. She glanced and gave the tiny tom next to her a smile.

"Iceclaw, is something wrong?" Fireheart asked, her older half-brother just stared back at her with his cold eyes. They held eye contact for a few moments before Iceclaw looked out the den.

"If you're worried about Pebblesplash, don't. Snakestar is with her, soon their kits will be here." Iceclaw mewed simply. Fireheart nodded but couldn't help but be concerned about her half-sister. Deciding that it wasn't good to stress about Pebblesplash, Fireheart laid by the den entrance. Iceclaw still sat beside her, although he wasn't the best at comforting others, Fireheart couldn't help but relax when he was there. Iceclaw had always been there for her, took cheer her up or advise her. She smiled lightly as a memory of them flashed across her mind for a moment.

—Flashback—-

_"Iceclaw! Iceclaw!" Firekit squealed as the young warrior made his way towards the nursery, a plump vole and two mice dangling from his jaws. Iceclaw slowed to a stop in front of Firekit and discreetly dropped the vole in front of her. Firekit's eyes lit up._

_He slipped into the nursery where Acornflower and Fawnkit were. Firekit grinned before snatching up the vole and half-carry, half-drag behind the nursery. Without waiting Firekit began to devour the fresh-kill. As she ate a chuckle from behind her made Firekit choke on the vole's flesh. She slowly turned her head and saw Iceclaw standing there with an amused look on his face._

_"Couldn't even wait for me to join you? How rude." Iceclaw teased, "You look like a mouse being caught with that expression."_

_Firekit swallowed as she glared at her brother, "And you look like a kit made into an apprentice four moons early"_

_Iceclaw gave her a sharp glare, and they eyed each other down for a few moments. Iceclaw pounced._

—Flashback End—-

"What are you smiling about?" Iceclaw asked, his icy blue eyes look down at her. Fireheart smiled softly.

"Oh, it's nothing just reminiscing." Fireheart mewed, the rain was beginning to slow.

"Reminiscing? You sound older than Moony." A voice teased from behind them. Fireheart glanced over her shoulder.

"That's funny coming from you Cherrytail, just yesterday you were complaining that all the rain was making your bones ache." Fireheart chirped, she sat back up and shifted to make room for the tortoiseshell she-cat to sit with them. "Also, you're not a kit anymore. You should call Skywatcher by his name."

The young warrior shrugged, "Skywatcher knows it's just a nickname, he doesn't care."

Fireheart shook her head lightly, suddenly there was a yowl from the nursery. Instantly Fireheart was to her paws and dashing towards the nursery. She stopped just in time to avoid slamming into Echosong. The medicine cat's eyes were clouded with emotion, held in her jaws were two small, unmoving kits. Echosong dipped her head to Fireheart before heading back to her den, the moment the silver she-cat had gotten out of the way Fireheart pushed into the nursery. Laying in a mossy nest was Pebblesplash, a single tiny kit snuggled at her belly. Beside Pebblesplash was Snakestar who stared down at the kit with worried eyes.

Pebblesplash weakly raised her head to look at Fireheart. Slowly padding toward Pebblesplash, Fireheart stopped next to her. She dipped her head to Snakestar who didn't even seem to acknowledge that she was there.

"H-Her name is Mistykit." Pebblesplash murmured, her eyes settled on her sole kit. Fireheart hummed as she crouched down to study the small kit. Definitely weak, Fireheart worried that she might not survive.

Snakestar spoke up quietly, "The other two were Stripekit and Rosekit."

She couldn't respond, not when her leader and friend sounded so broken. All Fireheart could do was pray to Starclan that they didn't snuff out the life within Mistykit.

* * *

"No, Harepaw, that position is meant for birds not rabbits." Leafdapple scolded harshly as Fireheart supervised the training of the apprentices. Tulip-paw had done well in hunting but severely lacked in fighting, meanwhile Pepperpaw was too easily distracted to pay attention any longer than a few moments. Fireheart could tell that Leafdapple was getting irritated by Harepaw's mistakes.

"Leafdapple! A word?" Fireheart called over to the tabby, Leafdapple paused before moving to her. As she approached Fireheart watched her tail lash back and forth. Leafdapple sat down before her.

"I know it's hard training an apprentice, Leafdapple, trust me, I've done it twice. But, just because you get frustrated doesn't mean you have to take it out on your apprentice. You already know all this, but Harepaw is learning. Give him time and he'll figure it out." Fireheart explained, Leafdapple's expression fell. It was clear that she had realized her mistakes.

"I know. I'll try better." Leafdapple replied before rejoining her apprentice. Fireheart decided that she should probably join a patrol, getting to her paws she went back to camp.

Upon entering camp she saw Shrewtooth and Whitepelt chatting by the fresh-kill pile.

"Shrewtooth, Whitepelt! Lets go on a hunting patrol."Fireheart shouted over to them. Shrewtooth practically jumped out of his skin at her voice before realizing it was her. They got to their paws and joined her. She led them towards the forest, and they split up.

The forest floor was still slightly damp from the recent rains but not as muddy as it had been earlier that morning. Fireheart scented the air and caught the scent of a rabbit, she followed the scent to a small meadow. Peering over the tall grass, she spotted the rabbit chewing on some sprouting flowers. Silently, she slipped into a hunter's crouch and began to stalk forward, careful to not rustle the undergrowth around her. When she was within striking distance, she pounced and pinned the rabbit down before snapping it's neck. Sitting back, Fireheart looked around and picked up the rabbit before burying it under a oak tree.

She hunted for a while before regrouping with Shrewtooth and Whitepelt. Although Shrewtooth hadn't caught much, Whitepelt had made up for it with an impressive catch. Upon entering camp Fireheart deposited of the fresh-kill into the pile but kept the rabbit. She also grabbed a pair of mice before heading for the elder's den. As she padded towards the den she glanced at Clovertail's kits, who were play fighting. Fireheart smiled around the prey in her jaws as she entered the elder's den. It was dark at first upon entering, she paused until her eyes had adjusted.

"What are you doing just standing there? Move it Fireheart!"

Fireheart huffed as she sent Fernpelt a playful glare. A familiar blazing pelt twitched slightly from its spot near Fernpelt. A head raised and a kind smile was sent towards Fireheart.

"Well isn't one of my wonderful kits!" Sunblaze mewed, his green eyes shining. Fireheart moved towards her father and Fernpelt. Dropping the rabbit at their paws Fireheart lightly head bumped Sunblaze's. Mouth still muffled by the two mice she still carried, she gave a light purr. As she made her way towards the corner of the den she dropped one of the mice in front of Morningdew before stopping behind a dark form curled in the corner of the den. Gently placing the plump mouse on the ground Fireheart sat silently as the form began to dark, patchy elder turned towards her.

"Fireheart." Skywatcher grumbled his light blue eyes flickering in the darkness of the den. She dipped her head respectively towards the elder.

"Hello, Skywatcher. I hope the kits haven't been disturbing your rest too much." Fireheart mewed as she nudged the mouse closer to him. The old tom made a strange noise at this.

He snatched a large bite from the mouse before responding, "Even if they were, I'd chase them out."

A chuckle from Morningdew caught Fireheart's attention. "Skywatcher I don't think you're able to chase even a blind and crippled mouse! I mean you're older than even me!"

Skywatcher snarled surprisingly loud before continuing to devour his fresh-kill. Fireheart smiled lightly, Skywatcher hadn't changed in all the time she'd known him. Even when she was a kit, Skywatcher had still been the oldest in the clan. At the time he had been training his second apprentice Larkflutter since his first apprentice had died from a falling tree. Looking back, Fireheart remembered when Larkflutter had died, killed by a fox while searching for herbs. The clan had been shocked when Starclan told Skywatcher that his next apprentice would be a kitty-pet. But, Echosong had been easily accepted into the clan, and Skywatcher retired to the elder's den a second time after he finished training her. Fireheart turned from the elders and began to leave, but not before dipping her head at Sunblaze. Her father smiled brightly at her and waved his tail in goodbye.

As Fireheart stepped out of the elder's den, momentarily blinded by the light, she looked around camp. Her clanmates were wandering about enjoying the sunny day, she made her way towards the fresh-kill pile before picking out a starling and taking to the shaded part of Rock-pile. Settling down and eating the fresh-kill, Fireheart watched Clovertail and Petalnose's kits play in the center of camp. They were completely carefree, just as kits should be. Suddenly, a thump of another cat laying next to her made Fireheart jump slightly. It was Clovertail, and approaching was Petalnose and Pebblesplash. Her half-sister was looking better, it had been about a moon and a half since her kitting. As the queens settled down around her, each carrying their own fresh-kill, Clovertail purred.

"The kits certainly are energetic today, Bouncekit was practically running about the nursery before dawn!"

Fireheart chuckled, Bouncekit was a pawful always getting into trouble. "Yes, it would seem so, I'm glad that New-Leaf had come early. It would have been difficult to care for so many kits in Leaf-Bare."

Petalnose nodded in agreement, "Yes, it would have been. We are lucky that our kits were born in New-Leaf, I don't know how I would have handled raising Sagekit and Mintkit in Leaf-Bare. I worried that the same fate would fall upon them as Fawnstep's litter." The pale she-cat admitted. Fireheart, hummed in agreement when Cloudtail and his littermates had been born in the middle of Leaf-Bare, the clan had worried. A litter of five, very rare, yet in the end only Cloudtail was alive by New-Leaf. Greencough had gotten the entire litter sick within the first two moons of the kits' lives, Fawnleap had been devastated and her mate, Olivenose, had also died that Leaf-Bare.

"That reminds me, Fireheart what is _your_ opinion on kits?" Clovertail asked innocently, the queen had fixed her attention on Fireheart.

"I think kits are wonderful." Fireheart replied simply, she couldn't lie, Fireheart adored the clan's kits often giving them badger rides or telling them stories. Pebblesplash smiled at her response.

"Really? Then what do you think about having kits yourself Fireheart?" Pebblesplash mewed, Fireheart realized she'd fallen into a trap.

"I, uh, you do realize I don't even have a mate yet, right Pebblesplash?" Fireheart chuckled nervously. The grin on her sister's face only got bigger.

Pebblesplash asked, "Then has any tom caught your eye? I know that you and Shrewtooth are pretty friendly."

Fireheart flushed, "We're just friends, Pebblesplash you know that, not to mention I'm not ready for kits."

Petalnose and Clovertail laughed at her expense while Pebblesplash nudged her playfully. They continued talking about the clan and so on, but Fireheart was still stuck on the conversation about kits. She would love to have kits, but there wasn't a tom she had romantic feelings for. Not to mention she was deputy, and if she had kits she'd be stuck in the nursery for six moons. Fireheart mentality sighed at this, she glanced across the camp and to the forest. Maybe a walk would clear her head. Finishing her fresh-kill and saying her goodbyes to the queens, she left camp heading towards the river.

* * *

As she watched the water flow on by from her perch on the fallen tree that hung over the river, Fireheart thought of the last prophecy Skywatcher had before his retirement.

_In search of forgiveness and of home, the sky will meet again with it's past at the riverside. Only with acceptance will the four become five once more._

At first both Fireheart and the rest of the clan had been confused about the message before Skywatcher had clarified that the prophecy was speaking of the other clans that had exiled Skyclan. Sunblaze had always told Fireheart and her siblings about his adventure with a Windclan cat, Talltail. It had been so long ago, but it all made sense with the prophecy. The clan had been spilt for a while about what to do when the other clans arrive. Some wanted to obey Starclan's command of accepting the other clan's with open paws, others wanted to turn them away and let them suffer the same way their ancestors had. In Fireheart's opinion both sides were justified, after all, the other clans had sentenced- what they thought to be certain death- to Skyclan by not saving them. On the other paw, the currently living cats of the other clans shouldn't be punished for something they didn't do, and according to Sunblaze; the other clans didn't even know about Skyclan's existence.

Fireheart startled when a fish leapt out of the water and splashed back into the river. She really should stop zoning out, looking up into the sky the sun was beginning to set. Deciding to do a quick patrol by the Two-leg Place, Fireheart got to her paws and jumped off the tree.

The walk to the Two-leg Place was quiet, nothing but faded scents and prey scampering off to hide in the shadows. Upon reaching the Two-leg Place she slowed her pace. No kitty-pets. But, the sound of a pained yowl caught her attention. Rushing further along the border, Fireheart's claws unsheathed at the sight of Oscar, a violent kitty-pet attacking Pepperpaw. With a loud screech she lunged at the black tom, startling him enough to release Pepperpaw. Biting hard into the tom's shoulder Fireheart snarled. Oscar roared in pain and twisted, forcing Fireheart to lose her hold on him. The black pelted troublemaker hissed at her, eyes glaring. From ahead of them, Fireheart could hear Cloudtail's rage filled yowl and the sound of a patrol with him. Pepperpaw, who had taken shelter behind her, cried out for her mentor. Oscar, now knowing he was outnumbered turned and fled into the Two-leg Place, but not before Fireheart had managed to claw his hunches during his retreat. As Cloudtail and his patrol approached Fireheart turned to check on Pepperpaw. The young she-cat was fairly scratched up, the worse being the one above her eye. But aside from that she seemed fine, a little shocked but that was all.

"Why were you separated from the patrol?" Fireheart asked, trying not to sound upset with the apprentice in any way.

"I-I needed to make dirt, Cloudtail said that I could catch up with them when I was done." Pepperpaw explained, shuffling her paws. Fireheart nodded and turned towards Cloudtail and his patrol, her beloved nephew slowed to a stop in front of her.

"Are you okay Pepperpaw?" Cloudtail asked his apprentice, who nodded. Once she had nodded, Cloudtail turned towards Fireheart, "I'm sick of the fox-hearted kitty-pet! We need to show him that he can't get away with stealing prey and attacking lonesome cats!"

Fireheart shook her head, even though she agreed with him it was really Snakestar's decision.

"I agree with you Cloudtail, as does much of the clan but it's still Snakestar's choice. I'll take Pepperpaw back to camp and report to Snakestar. Take your patrol and finish, I'll see you when you return to camp." Fireheart mewed, helping Pepperpaw to stand she began to lead the apprentice back to camp. Behind her she could hear Cloudtail commanding his patrol to continue on. As she and Pepperpaw neared the Gorge they watched as the guard, Flarestorm, ran up to meet them. The former kitty-pet halted when he saw Pepperpaw's wounds. The expression he made was that of understanding and annoyance. Fireheart didn't even have to tell him that it was Oscar. He helped Fireheart to bring Pepperpaw down the slope and into camp. Leading the apprentice into the medicine cat's den Echosong gasped at the sight of Pepperpaw before rushing to gather the herbs needed to heal her. Fireheart then left the den to go to the leader's den.

As she entered Snakestar looked up from his nest and sat up. After explaining what had happened to him, he sighed.

"Oscar is truly a nuisance, I would let our warriors deal with him but, he's just one cat." Snakestar admitted, "But, by doing so we stoop to his level. One day his Two-legs will grow tired of caring for his injuries, maybe then he'll stay locked up in his Two-leg nest."

"Of course, Snakestar." Fireheart agreed even though she didn't. With a respectful dip of her head, Fireheart left and headed towards the warrior's den. Night had fallen by now and Fireheart was exhausted. Entering the den she stepped over sleeping clanmates before collapsing into her nest beside Iceclaw. A single icy blue eye opened for a brief moment before closing again, as Fireheart stilled in her nest Iceclaw's tail rested on her side. With a yawn she closed her emerald eyes and fell into a deep sleep with the comfort of her brother nearby.


	3. Allegiance of Skyclan

**_A/N I forgot to add this in the previous chapter, I need more cats for the other clans (mainly because theres not very many cats in them) so feel free to send in OCs and what clan you want them in. Hope you all like this story!_**

* * *

SKYCLAN

Leader- Snakestar: white tom with dark gray patches and blue eyes

Deputy- Fireheart: flame-colored she-cat with emerald eyes

Medicine Cat- Echosong: silver tabby she-cat with green eyes

Warriors

Iceclaw: very small black tom with a single white paw and ice blue eyes

Apprentice: Tulip-paw

Magpiewing: white and black tom with yellow eyes

Fawnstep: pretty brown tabby she-cat with white chest and paws with amber eyes

Leafdapple: light brown and cream tabby she-cat with amber eyes

Apprentice: Harepaw

Sharpclaw: large dark ginger tom with dark blue eyes

Cherrytail: fluffy tortoiseshell she-cat with green eyes

Sparrowpelt: dark brown tabby tom with yellow eyes

Waspwhisker: light gray and white tom with yellow eyes

Patchfoot: black and white tom with amber eyes

Springleap: yellow and white tabby she-cat with amber eyes

Fallowfern: pale brown she-cat with yellow eyes

Volewhisker: dark brown and white tom with amber eyes

Whitepelt: white tom with blue-green eyes and scar across pelt

Cloudtail: fluffy white tom with bright blue eyes

Apprentice: Pepperpaw

Shrewtooth: skinny black tom with amber eyes

Rainfur: light gray tom with darker dapples and blue eyes

Speckledthrush: light brown she-cat with white and dark brown speckles with yellow eyes

Flarestorm: large white tom with orange tabby patches and green eyes

Apprentices:

Tulip-paw: long-legged pale brown tabby she-cat with blue eyes

Harepaw: sleek brown tom with white paws and amber eyes

Pepperpaw: light gray she-cat with black flecks and yellow eyes

Queens:

Petalnose: pale gray she-cat with blue eyes (Mate: Rainfur, Kits: Sagekit and Mintkit)

Clovertail: light brown she-cat with white belly and green eyes (Mate: Patchfoot: Kits: Bouncekit, Rock-kit, and Tinykit)

Pebblesplash: pale gray she-cat with light blue eyes (Mate: Snakestar, Kit: Mistykit)

Kits:

Sagekit: pale gray tom with slightly darker stripes and blue eyes

Mintkit: gray tabby she-cat with blue eyes

Bouncekit: orange tabby tom with dull green eyes

Rock-kit: black tom with amber eyes

Tinykit: small white she-cat with blue eyes

Mistykit: dark gray she-cat with lighter belly and chest with bright blue eyes

Elders:

Skywatcher: very old dark gray tom with patchy fur and light blue eyes

Fernpelt: pale brown she-cat with darker speckles and yellow eyes

Morningdew: soft-furred ginger tortoiseshell with green eyes

Sunblaze: plump blazing orange tabby tom with jade green eyes


	4. Chapter 3

**_A/N. Just wanted to say thank you all for the support and reviews! I also wanted to respond to AtlierSky's comment on Sunblaze's mates. Nutmeg and Quince are both mentioned/will be mentioned in the story, I changed their names to (Nutmeg) Acornflower and (Quince) Quietflight. Acornflower was briefly mentioned in Fireheart's flashback. Quietflight/Quince will be brought up later. Anyways, I'm truly overjoyed that lots of people are liking my AU. I would also like to apologize for the very late update, this October I had lots of family visiting so I didn't have the time to write then and health issues mixed with school stopped me until now. I'm also very sorry for how short this chapter is, but it's just a filler. Hopefully the next chapter will be up later today or tomorrow. Btw, I still need OCs for the other clans._**

* * *

Fireheart's P.O.V

When Fireheart awoke it was just before dawn, getting to her paws she began to groom herself and glanced around the den. Beside her were Iceclaw and Fawnstep, both still sleeping. Others in the den were either just waking up or sleeping. Fireheart suppressed a purr of laughter when Patchfoot raised his head, half awake, with a piece of moss clinging to his face. Getting to her paws, Fireheart left the den and made her way to the base of Rock-pile to get patrols ready. As her fellow clanmates left their dens with the sun steadily rising from beyond the Gorge, Fireheart watched as Waspwhisker and Flarestorm came down the slope from night guard. When they passed her, she dipped her head and they did the same. The first warrior who had left the warrior's den had been Sharpclaw, the hard-headed tom followed by Patchfoot and Leafdapple, made their way to her.

"Sharpclaw, you can lead the dawn patrol, Leafdapple take Harepaw with you." Fireheart ordered, Sharpclaw huffed at her before nodding to the others and heading towards the camp entrance. She shook her head lightly, Sharpclaw had been angry towards her ever since she was announced deputy. But she was the better choice, Sharpclaw hadn't trained an apprentice at the time and is well known for his fighter nature. Even now she could hear Cloudtail's, then Cloudpaw, joyous cry when she became deputy. Soon more cats began to flow into the center of camp, even Skywatcher was out laying besides the entrance of the elder's den.

Spotting Magpiewing and Speckledthrush, she called them over. After assigning them to both lead hunt patrols with cats of their own choosing, Fireheart waited patiently as the patrols filtered out of camp. Deciding that hunting would be good, she slipped into the forest. But as she was leaving a call for her caught her attention. Running up to her was Iceclaw, he slowed down to a normal pace as he dipped his head towards her.

"Hunting?" Iceclaw asked, his head tilted. Fireheart nodded and continued into the forest, her brother at her side. They split ways after wandering for a while, as Fireheart hunted she noticed the sky begin to darken. She frowned, just when the rain was beginning to stop it kicked back up again. As time passed Fireheart had managed to gather an impressive catch and made her way back to camp. Rejoined by Iceclaw on the way, they chatted about Iceclaw's newest apprentice and Mistykit's recent health issue.

The day had been calm with only a mishaps, mainly with apprentices not doing what they needed to do, but something was bugging Fireheart. As she sat in the shade of Rock-Pile watching the dusk patrol she'd just organized leave, something made her look towards Whispering Cave. Standing in front of the cave was Echosong. The young medicine cat had an expression of pure terror, her green eyes stared blankly over camp and her fur was raised along her spine. Swiftly crossing the camp, Fireheart stopped just before Echosong. After a few moments Echosong's blank stare moved to her as the silver she-cat whispered something that made Fireheart's skin crawl.

"The clans are coming, Fireheart, the peace we had for so long is about to be broken."

* * *

Whitestar's P.O.V

The camp was in chaos, Dappletail had just dropped dead after eating a poisoned rabbit. The clan had been starving from lack of prey. The Two-Legs having appeared little over a moon ago and the clan leaders have been preparing their clans to leave the territories. But, something seemed wrong within the clan. Early that morning Ashstripe and Mousefur had scented rogues deep with the territory but it disappeared before they could find were it led to. Currently, however, was the issue of the elders. One-eye and most of the other elders were far too old to make the journey, and now Whitestar was forced to make a horrible decision. To leave his own clan-mates to die, or bring them and risk harming the rest of the clan. As he thought about the decision he must make, Willowpelt padded up to him. He paused and looked at his mate expectantly.

"The elders want to speak with you." Willowpelt murmured, her eyes looking past him at Dappletail's figure in the center of camp. Whitestar gave her a nod as he rose to his paws, making his way past the vigil, Whitestar slipped into the Elders den. The first elder Whitestar saw was One-eye, the ancient she-cat was laying next to Speckletail. Nearby them was Shortfur, the remaining elders turned towards him. Speckletail made a motion at Whitestar for him to sit with them.

However, before Whitestar could even open his mouth Shortfur cut him off. "We're staying Whitestar."

Whitestar stared back at the pale tom before replying, "That's unnecessary Shortfur, I'm sure that you and the others will be-"

"No we can't. You know this too; we won't be able to travel for several moons at our age, besides this land has always been our home. We were born here, and its here we will die." Shortfur snapped, effectively cutting off Whitestar.

"Whitestar, it must be clear to even you that we should at least have a say in what happens to us. We've lived good long lives, the younger cats need to live much more than us, prioritize them." One-eye added, the old she-cat turned to him despite being completely blind. Whitestar dipped his head in respect to the elders before leaving.

Once outside the den he called Runningwind to deliver a message to the other clans that Thunderclan was ready to leave the forest and that all the clans should meet at the Fourtrees. As Runningwind left camp, Whitestar looked toward the sky.

_Ah, it's like what Lionheart once said. Life doesn't stop moving, not even Starclan can stop the inevitable._


	5. Allegiances of the Other Clans

_**A/N: I know that I said that the new chapter would be released after the last but due to the chapter being absolutely boring and poorly written, I decided to rewrite it completely. Just know that the next chapter will be about 3,000 words long. Sorry for the inconsistent updates.**_

* * *

Thunderclan

Leader- Whitestar: short furred white tom with yellow eyes

Deputy- Sandstorm: pale ginger she-cat with slightly darker stripes and light green eyes

Apprentice: Sorrelpaw

Medicine Cat- Cinderpelt: dark gray she-cat with blue eyes and a crippled leg

Warriors:

Graystripe: gray tom with a darker stripe down back with amber eyes

Mousefur: small dusky brown she-cat with amber eyes

Apprentice: Rainpaw

Longtail: pale tabby tom with black stripes and pale blue eyes

Willowpelt: very pale gray she-cat with unusually blue eyes

Dustpelt: brown tabby tom with amber eyes

Ashstripe: light gray tabby tom with much darker markings include one going from head to tail with amber eyes

Brackenfur: golden-brown tom with amber eyes

Thornclaw: light golden-brown tabby tom with green eyes

Apprentice: Sootpaw

Ashfur: pale gray tom with darker flecks and blue eyes

Ferncloud: light gray she-cat with darker flecks and green eyes

Brambleclaw: dark brown tabby tom with amber eyes

Goldenflower: pale ginger tabby she-cat

Frostfur: beautiful white she-cat with blue eyes

Apprentices:

Sorrelpaw: tortoiseshell and white she-cat with amber eyes

Rainpaw: dark gray tom with blue eyes

Sootpaw: light gray tom with amber eyes

Queens:

Ferncloud: light gray she-cat with darker flecks and green eyes (Mate: Dustpelt, Kits, Spiderkit and Shrewkit)

Kits:

Spiderkit: long legged black tom with brown belly and amber eyes

Shrewkit: dark brown tom with lighter muzzle and paws with amber eyes

* * *

Windclan:

Leader: Tallstar: black and white tom with a very long tail and amber eyes

Deputy: Deadfoot: black tom with a twisted paw

Medicine Cat: Barkface: short tailed brown tom with amber eyes

Warriors:

Mudclaw: mottled dark brown tom with light amber eyes

Tornear: gray tabby tom with yellow eyes and a torn ear

Onewhisker: brown and white tabby tom with amber eyes

Breezenose: black she-cat with yellow eyes

Gorsetail: white tom with ginger tabby patches and green eyes

Apprentice: Snowypaw

Webfoot: wiry dark gray tom with amber eyes

Fleetfoot: tall and lanky gray tom with lighter gray tabby markings with a long tail

Apprentice: Riftpaw

Runningbrook: light gray she-cat with yellow eyes

Whitetail: small white she-cat with pale green eyes

Spotfur: white and black she-cat with blue eyes

Apprentices:

Riftpaw: sleek dark gray tabby tom with bright green eyes

Snowypaw: white she-cat with light gray dapples and amber eyes

Queens:

Ashfoot: gray she-cat with blue eyes (Mate: Deadfoot, Kits: expecting)

* * *

Riverclan

Leader: Leopardstar: dappled golden tabby she-cat with amber eyes

Deputy: Stonefur: pale blue-gray tom with tattered ears and blue eyes

Apprentice: Pikepaw

Medicine Cat: Mudfur: long furred light brown tom with amber eyes

Warriors:

Blackclaw: smoky black tom with green eyes

Loudbelly: dark brown tom with blue eyes

Apprentice: Reedpaw

Heavystep: large brown tabby tom with yellow eyes

Apprentice: Primrosepaw

Silentsong: fluffy black she-cat with silvery blue eyes

Mistyfoot: light blue-gray she-cat with blue eyes

Stormfur: dark gray tom with amber eyes

Feathertail: light silvery-gray tabby she-cat with blue eyes

Hawkfrost: dark brown tabby tom with a white underbelly and ice-blue eyes

Mothwing: golden dappled she-cat with amber eyes

Streampelt: pretty calico she-cat with light brown eyes

Volenose: dark brown tom with green eyes

Frogleap: gray tom with striped tail and green eyes

Apprentices:

Primrosepaw: pale creamy-brown she-cat with white paws and amber eyes

Reedpaw: sleek black tom with green eyes

Pikepaw: dark gray tom with dappled black markings and blue eyes

Queens:

Mosspelt: brown and black tortoiseshell she-cat with green eyes (Mate: Frogleap, kits: Plumkit)

Shadepelt: dark gray she-cat with green eyes (Mate: Loudbelly, expecting)

Kits:

Plumkit: fluffy tortoiseshell she-cat with green eyes

* * *

Shadowclan:

Leader: Blackstar: large white tom with black paws and amber eyes

Deputy: Russetfur: dark ginger she-cat with dark green eyes

Medicine cat: Runningnose: gray and white tom with yellow eyes

Littlecloud: very small pale brown tabby tom with amber eyes

Warriors:

Rowanclaw: dark ginger tom with amber eyes

Oakfur: small brown tom with amber eyes

Cedarheart: dark gray tom with yellow eyes

Apprentice: Ferretpaw

Tawnypelt: tortoiseshell she-cat with green eyes

Ratscar: dark brown tom with long scar and amber eyes

Snaketooth: lanky speckled gray tom with long fangs and yellow eyes

Duskheart: brown tabby she-cat with bright blue eyes

Snagclaw: yellow tabby tom with white paws and green eyes

Aspen-nose: white she-cat with amber eyes

Beetlestep: sleek brown tom with lighter patches and yellow eyes

Apprentices:

Ferretpaw: light gray tabby tom with blue eyes

Queens:

Tallpoppy: long legged pale brown tabby she-cat with light green eyes (Mate: Blackstar, kits: Hollykit and Frostkit)

Darkflower: black she-cat with dark blue eyes (Mate: Snaketooth, kits: Lavenderkit, Fuzzykit, and Talonkit)

Kits:

Hollykit: tall black she-cat with white paws and amber eyes

Frostkit: white tom with tabby patches and blue eyes

Lavenderkit: light gray she-cat with white dapples and blue eyes

Fuzzykit: silky furred black dappled tom with yellow eyes

Talonkit: dark gray tom with green eyes


	6. Chapter 4

**A/N: Hey everyone! Sorry this took so long but this chapter is a little bit over 5,000 words, so hopefully that can make it up a little bit. Next chapter should be up next weekend if school doesn't give me a lot of work. Hope you all enjoy this chapter!**

* * *

_Chapter 4: A deputy and four leaders_

Fireheart's P.O.V

Rain poured once more outside the Warrior's den, beside Fireheart was Fawnstep who was in deep conversation with Cloudtail and Speckledthrush. After Echosong's vision in the Whispering Cave many members of the clan had become increasingly concerned over the impending arrival of the other clans. As she watched the rain continue to fall, Fireheart felt Fawnstep shift next to her, a soft paw nudged her. Fireheart turned towards her littermate with a tilt of the head.

"Did you hear Speckledthrush's question?" Fawnstep asked, a flash of concern crossed her eyes. Fireheart shook her head.

"No, I didn't. Can you repeat what you said again, Speckledthrush?" Fireheart mewed redirecting her attention to the speckled she-cat.

Speckledthrush frowned momentarily before replying, "What do you think about Echosong's vision? I mean her visions aren't as clear as Skywatcher's and she's still a bit inexperienced from interpreting omens."

The comment about Echosong's ability to understand Starclan made Fireheart frown sharply. "Well, I certainly doubt that even_ you_ can interpret Starclan's messages as clearly as Skywatcher, Speckledthrush. But Echosong is smart and a great medicine cat, her omen didn't blame the peace breaking on the clans, only that it would happen around the same time."

Fireheart mentally grinned at the expression that twisted on Speckledthrush's face before the she-cat huffed and shook her head. Cloudtail looked nervously between the two of them, the blue-eyed tom then took it upon himself to change the conversation.

"Well what do you all think of…" Cloudtail paused as he thought of a conversation starter, "Clovertail's kits? They'll be apprentices in about two moons."

Fawnstep immediately jumped at the question, probably to assist in changing the subject, "I think Snakestar is going to give Sharpclaw an apprentice, I was thinking maybe Bouncekit."

As Cloudtail and Fawnstep dragged Speckledthrush into their conversation Fireheart got to her paws and moved closer to the den entrance. A loud sneeze from Shrewtooth caused a nearby Waspwhisker to stare at the scrawny tom in pure disgust before scooting away. Fireheart sighed before ordering Shrewtooth to go to the Medicine cat den. Hopefully, he wasn't developing a cold like Springleap. The den was almost filled completely at this point, only Iceclaw's border patrol was still gone. Fireheart sighed, the rain was starting to let up but she was immensely bored. The day only seemed to drag on as well. Clambering to her paws, Fireheart slipped out of the den and down the slope towards the Nursery. Hopefully Pebblesplash would be interested in a talk. Quickly padding over Nursery, Fireheart entered before shaking off the water that clung to her fur.

The Nursery was quite large, the cave had some plants growing up the sides of the cave and hung from the roof of the den. Clovertail raised her head from her nest, her kits were tucked together at her side sleeping. Fireheart looked around before turning to Clovertail.

"Where's Pebblesplash?" Fireheart asked quietly, Petalnose was also present but was sleeping as well. With the gray queen was Mistykit, who was curled up between Petalnose's paws, tucked under Petalnose's neck.

Clovertail sighed, "Visiting Snakestar, I swear she's as starstruck by him as when she was an apprentice. But, I'm starting to worry about her."

Fireheart's ear flicked at this, crossing the den before crouching beside Clovertail. As she settled, glancing at the kits briefly, Fireheart asked, "Why are you worrying about Pebblesplash?"

Clovertail shifted nervously before responding, "I wasn't planning on saying anything… but I'm worried about how she's raising Mistykit."

At Fireheart's confused look Clovertail continued. "It's odd, all queens that I've seen tend to be overprotective of their kits. Even more so if something happens to some of them, like Fawnstep. She refused to let Cloudtail out of the nursery after his littermates died, she'd rush him to Skywatcher if he so much as sneezed. But Pebblesplash… she ignores the fact she's a queen most the time. Usually its Petalnose or myself looking after Mistykit, not that we mind, but Pebblesplash barely even pays any attention to Mistykit. Its borderline neglectful at this point Fireheart! If anything your sister should be with Mistykit more than Snakestar, I don't even know if he's noticed it."

As Clovertail caught her breath from the long rant, Fireheart began to ponder. How had she not noticed? Pebblesplash took frequent walks, Fireheart wasn't even sure where she went. But when Fireheart saw her sister, she was almost always with Mistykit. Was she really blind to it? Glancing over to Petalnose's nest, Fireheart saw Mistykit laying peacefully; completely unaware of the turmoil caused by her mother. After exchanging a few more words with Clovertail, Fireheart dipped her head to the queen before leaving. The rain had stopped and the clouds began to clear, a yowl from the camp entrance alerted her to Iceclaw's patrol. The smallest warrior made his way to Fireheart. As Iceclaw neared, a loud chirp from Snakestar's den made both of them turn towards Pebblesplash who was making her way to them. Fireheart felt herself stiffen as Pebblesplash approached, she looked happy.

As Pebblesplash neared she eyed Fireheart for a moment before asking, "Is there something wrong Fireheart?"

* * *

Blackstar's P.O.V

The branches of the Fourtrees covered the hollow with a shaded hold. So far only Thunderclan and Shadowclan had arrived to the Gathering place. But this time it wasn't the full moon, but rather the morning in which the clans would leave their founded homeland. Blackstar watched his clan intermingle with the Thunderclan cats with Whitestar at his side. The fellow leader watched the two clans with a blank expression and serious eyes. Blackstar turned his attention back to his clan, both Runningnose and Littlecloud were deep in conversation with Cinderpelt. The Medicine cats had been on edge since they arrived, the fear of whether or not they would be able to communicate with Starclan in the Skyclan territory was getting to them. Not far off from them was Tallpoppy. With her was her and Blackstar's two surviving kits, Amberkit having been killed from Twolegs destroying the Shadowclan camp. Blackstar's claws gripped Great Rock, his clan was being punished for an unfair act decided on by his ancestors, and his son had paid the price. A weight settling over his shoulders shook him from his thoughts, Whitestar looked at him with understanding eyes and his tail draped over his shoulders.

Blackstar dipped his head to the Thunderclan leader just as a yowl from the edge of the hollow alerted them to Riverclan's arrival. Leopardstar led her clan into the hollow, Stonefur close to her side. Seeing them brought a brief flash of a memory to Blackstar. During the time of Tigerclan, Stonefur had stepped forward to defend Graystripe's half-clan kits. Leopardstar had done nothing when Tigerstar allowed Darkstripe to fight Stonefur. The Riverclan deputy was powerful and qdefeated Darkstripe and Blackstar himself very easily. It was Stonefur's intervention that saved the half-clan cats from death. The rage on Stonefur's face that night deeply reminded Blackstar of his own rage when Bone and his cats had tried to take over the forest. When the battle was over and Blackstar became leader did he realize the pain and fear he had inflicted without reason. Now the only thing he could do was try to be a better warrior and leader than he was before.

Leopardstar leaped onto Great Rock before sitting beside them, Whitestar's tail slipping off his shoulders. The dappled she-cat's tail was lashing impatiently, understandable, Riverclan had been suffering the most with the Twoleg rubbish that clogged and poisoned the river. Blackstar glanced toward the direction of Windclan, soon they too will arrive and the journey will begin. He turned to look at his clanmates once more, fear lingered on their faces. Soon they would be traveling into the unknown and more than likely a few will not make the journey. Blackstar's ear twitched as the sound of Windclan entering the hollow. Rising to his paws, Blackstar jumped down to meet Tallstar, Leopardstar and Whitestar not far behind. With a loud yowl Tallstar, the oldest leader, called the clans to their attention.

Whitestar was the first to speak, "This will be our final goodbye to the forest that for so long has protected and provided for us. If we are to survive this journey all the clans must work together."

"All Queens, Kits, and Medicine cats will travel in the center of our group. Warriors and apprentices will be relied on more than ever before to protect them on this journey." Tallstar added as Blackstar stepped forward.

"Although we all will work together, we are still separate clans. Leaders and deputies will still hold authority over their respective clans." Blackstar announced.

Leopardstar went forward, "Together we will make it to our promised land, and be united with the lost clan. Fear not, for Starclan will not abandon us. We survived the reigns of Tigerstar and Brokenstar, the clans prevailed against Bloodclan, and we all have survived countless conflicts raised against us. But, as the noble clans that we are, never have we given up. And I hope that we never will."

With Leopardstar's final words the clans began to cheer, for the future they would have. As Blackstar and the other leaders began to head towards the river, the clans began to reorganize so that the Queens and others were in the center. Blackstar paused momentarily to bump his head gently against Tallpoppy's. At her paws were their kits, bending down Blackstar gave both of them a lick of affection before continuing towards the front of the clans. As he approached the other leaders, Tallstar gave him a kind smile. The older leader clearly understood Blackstar's stress over his family.

It was mid-morning when Blackstar prayed to Starclan that his clan would survive before leading the clans along the other leaders out of the forest for good.

* * *

Leopardstar's P.O.V

The water was filled with rubbish.

That was the first thing Leopardstar noticed as the clans passed over Sunningrocks. She gritted her teeth, the river that she'd learn to swim in was ruined and now she had to leave the only home she had ever known. Ever since the shared dream with the other leaders and Medicine cats, Leopardstar felt like a failure. Not only had she allowed Tigerstar to takeover her clan but she couldn't protect her clanmates from this terrible fate as an apology. Leopardstar shook her head, if Crookedstar was looking down on her would he be regretting his choice of deputy?

Redirecting her head on the path ahead of her, Leopardstar pushed forward past Whitestar and Tallstar who were in conversation. An annoyed huff from Whitestar caused her to spin her head around and bare her teeth. Not giving Whitestar a chance to reply she quickened her pace. Leopardstar looked into the clear sky above, would Riverclan have a suitable home in the new forest? Anxiety prickled at Leopardstar's pelt as she slowed down as to not become separated from the clans.

"Leopardstar!" A call from behind her. The dappled leader turned to see Mistyfoot approaching swiftly. She stopped and waited for Mistyfoot, her old friend smiled at her as she neared.

"Is there something wrong Mistyfoot? I thought you were going to travel with Blackclaw and your kits." Leopardstar asked, the blue hued she-cat only chuckled.

"Blackclaw is watching over Reedpaw and Primrosepaw. Pikepaw is a bit busy fawning over Feathertail." Mistyfoot chirped lightly, unaware of Leopardtsar's wince at the mention of the half-blind Feathertail. Despite it Leopardstar still nodded at Mistyfoot's explanation.

Leopardstar glanced over her shoulder and saw that Whitestar and the other leaders were nearby. Mistyfoot lightly nudged her, and gave her an exasperated sigh.

"You know if you weren't so rude to the other leaders they would be more respectful of you." Mistyfoot mewed loud enough for just Leopardstar to hear.

Leopardstar sent a sharp glare at the warrior before replying, "They wouldn't respect me even if I was the kindest most pure-hearted cat in all the clans. Least of all Blackstar, he witnessed my 'spectacular' leadership skills when Riverclan became prisoner in their own territory."

"I disagree," Mistyfoot snapped, "Blackstar is trying his best, if anything he has more to prove than you. He served as deputy under not one but two corrupt leaders as their deputy, and did nothing while they harmed their own clans for power. He tried to kill my brother, Stormfur, and Feathertail. From what I've heard from Thunderclan, he's even kit-napped an entire litter and killed an elder. You made one mistake, a mistake that Riverclan forgave you for. You don't need to prove anything to anyone! You are an amazing leader, take pride in that and take the respect you deserve as a leader."

Leopardstar clamped her jaws shut, Mistyfoot was right like always. Thinking back to when they were young warriors before the Reign of Grief as it was referred to as began. Leopardstar could remember the soft laughter of Whiteclaw, and the close friendship that Leopardstar held with Silverstream. Her eyes began to burn as the echoes of Mudfur's proud cheer of when she became a warrior rang in her ears. The loving glaze Shimmerpelt held for Leopardstar despite not being her birth mother.

Leopardstar flinched as Mistyfoot licked the tears that had began to slide down her cheeks. The whole time Leopardstar felt as if she'd let down those around her, when in reality it was her own guilt that tore holes into her confidence which she covered with false bravado. She hung her head and was careful not to let the other leaders see her face. Mistyfoot pressed her pelt against Leopardstar's. She couldn't remember the last time she'd allowed herself to be weak. Maybe just maybe, Leopardstar needed the push. As she and Mistyfoot continued to walk, Mistyfoot spoke softly to her telling her how Plumkit had become fast friends with the Thunderclan and Shadowclan kits.

"Lavenderkit and Hollykit were very happy to see that they weren't the only she-kits in the clans. You should have seen Plumkit's reaction to meeting Tallpoppy, she asked Tallpoppy if she was part deer!" Mistyfoot laughed, Leopardstar smiled softly at the image of Plumkit gaping like a fish at the height of Tallpoppy.

"And what about your kits, Mistyfoot? I know you said that Blackclaw was watching them, but how are they handling all of this?" Leopardstar asked, her tears having dried up by now.

Mistyfoot ducked her head in an attempt to keep herself from laughing, "Reedpaw swears that he's going to show all the Skyclan cats just how skilled Riverclan is by swimming in the river and catching the biggest fish they've ever seen. But Primrosepaw wants to know what makes them special. Then there's Pikepaw's crush on Feathertail, but I think thats been known for a while now."

"What makes Skyclan special?" Leopardstar mewed, confused. Mistyfoot nodded at this before elaborating with her.

"Well, Riverclan is the only clan that can swim and hunts fish, Windclan is the fastest, Shadowclan is the most stealthy, and Thunderclan has the best climbers." Mistyfoot explained, "Primrosepaw was wondering what makes the Skyclan cats different from the other clans."

Leopardstar pondered on that for a few moments, the memory she had seen of Skyclan certainly didn't give anything away about the clan. Many had looked starved and weak, with drooping shoulders and dragging paws. She then shrugged, after all she didn't know the answer to the question.

She turned her head to Mistyfoot and smirked, "Well in a few moons maybe less, we'll find out ourselves."

Mistyfoot nodded in agreement, "Do you think they'll actually accept us, after what our ancestors did to them?"

Leopardstar lowered her head before replying, "I hope so, for all I know they could only be allowing us to join them because Starclan ordered them to."

The warrior grumbled at this, her face furrowed. Mistyfoot did have a strong faith in Starclan, but the same was unknown with Skyclan. As they continued on, Leopardstar began to wonder about Skyclan. She knew almost nothing about the clan that had been exiled, just what would Skyclan do after meeting the decedents of those who had thought they were sentencing Skyclan to death.

* * *

Whitestar's P.O.V

The sky was beginning to darken, Tallstar had taken the initiative and ordered for the clans to halt and begin to look for shelter for the night. Whitestar himself had sent out Mousefur and Sandstorm to lead two hunting patrols while Deadfoot had called for a quick check over the area to make sure it was secure. Whitestar padded over to Willowpelt, his mate was speaking to a Windclan she-cat and Frostfur. The two other she-cats dipped their heads to him respectfully before leaving him and Willowpelt. She gave him a light purr as he leaned against her, a chirp from behind them alerted them to Sorrelpaw and Sootpaw. Whitestar smiled at his two kits before looking around for Rainpaw, who he spotted talking to a few other apprentices.

"Whitestar, how long do you think it'll take to reach Skyclan?" Sootpaw asked innocently his amber eyes shining.

"A few moons at most, maybe less if we continue at the same pace as today." Whitestar replied before trying to lick his son's forehead. Sootpaw ducked his head and let out an annoyed whine, Sorrelpaw laughed at his expense. Meanwhile, Willowpelt huffed with a lighthearted expression as she called Rainpaw over to join them. As Whitestar relished in the company of his family he glanced over to the other clan cats and saw them doing the same. Eventually, he had to pull away from his beloved kin to approach Tallstar and Leopardstar who were deep conversation with their Deputies and Medicine cats.

Swiftly passing over to the other clan heads, Whitestar settled into the group. Dipping his head to them, he got caught up with the conversation. Apparently a Windclan apprentice had twisted a paw by tripping into a ditch shortly after they had left the clan territory. But walking on the paw had made the sprain worse and the Medicine cats had no supplies.

"I splinted the sprain with what I could find, but there's no poppyseed to help with the pain or elder leaves." Barkface murmured his ear flicked in agitation.

Whitestar turned to the Medicine cat, "Can the apprentice wait until morning when you and the other Medicine cats have the daylight to search for herbs? You all would need to be accompanied by a warrior or two."

Barkface sighed as if Whitestar was a clueless kit fresh from the nursery. "We could wait, but by then the swelling will be much worse. As will the pain, it'd be better to give Riftpaw the poppyseed tonight so that the effect can work and he can sleep off the drowsiness instead of falling asleep on his paws while traveling."

He winced as he realized that his proposal was quite foolish. But thankfully Cinderpelt was there to add in her own advice.

"I think I saw some dandelion growing near the river, Barkface, its not as strong as poppy but it should help with the pain." Cinderpelt mewed, Barkface nodded and followed her back towards the river. Deadfoot quickly went to join them, as Whitestar turned to Leopardstar.

"The journey will be much longer if cats keep getting injuries like the apprentice. Maybe the apprentices should travel in the center of the group?" Whitestar proposed, but Leopardstar shook her head.

"No, we'd be spread out too thin, if something were to attack all the warriors and apprentices will be needed." Leopardstar mewed, she seemed calmer than she had been that morning.

Tallstar nodded his head in agreement as Sandstorm's hunting patrol returned. For the first time in moons a hunting patrol returned with every warrior holding at least two pieces of prey. Whitestar felt his chest swell with pride at his former apprentice, but it quickly disappeared at the sight of Longtail. The pale warrior carried a plump rabbit in his jaws, a catch to be proud of yet he hung his head. Longtail then padded over to Ferncloud and offered the rabbit to her and her kits. The speckled queen promptly growled at him as she wrapped her tail around her kits. Whitestar frowned at the interaction, most of Thunderclan had lost trust towards Longtail. After all he had been a supporter of Tigerstar and friend of Darkstripe. Whitestar himself found it hard to trust the young warrior after the poisoning of his daughter, but Longtail had proven himself loyal by rebuking Tigerstar and fighting alongside Lionclan against Bloodclan.

As Longtail crept away to the Riverclan cats to give them his rabbit, Whitestar looked over to his daughter. Sorrelpaw had become a fine young she-cat, he was proud of her. She didn't blame Longtail for the incident since it had been Darkstripe, and yet he was shunned by his clanmates while Dustpelt was embraced despite also being a follower of Tigerstar. It did confuse Whitestar considerably, but it wasn't like he could force Thunderclan to accept Longtail.

With a quick stretch Whitestar got to his paws and padded over to his mate. Willowpelt was eating a mouse with large bites, she ate so fast that Whitestar thought she might choke. It had been a while since any of them could eat without the fear of poisoning. Looking around Whitestar could see that almost every cat was able to eat something. A few warriors lingered at the edge of the temporary camp, probably planing on hunting to catch more prey. He jumped as a mouse was dropped in front of his nose. Looking up he saw Mousefur's amused expression before she walked off to join Thornclaw. Willowpelt shifted to lean against him as he took a bite from the mouse. It was delicious, soon enough he was tearing into the mouse like Willowpelt had.

Licking his jaws clean Whitestar sighed contently as Willowpelt groomed his fur. The night air was was warm as the stars above shined down on them. Many cats had finished eating while the clans began to settle for the night. Ashfur and Turnear had been the first to volunteer for guard, a few others joined them. They would stay up until Moonhigh before switching with a different warrior. Whitestar watched as the queens and kits were herded into an abandoned fox den under a tree as other members of the clans found somewhere in the open to sleep. Laying his head on his paws, Whitestar watched with tired eyes as Rainpaw padded over to him and Willowpelt before squeezing between them. He let out a huff of laughter as Rainpaw shifted to get comfortable, Sootpaw and Sorrelpaw followed not far behind Rainpaw. Sootpaw lay next to Whitestar, well not really next to him more like half of him was laying on top of Whitestar. Meanwhile Sorrelpaw as curled next to Willowpelt.

Whitestar whispered quietly to Willowpelt as no not wake their kits, "They can be as needy as kits at times."

"Oh, let them. They need some comfort, sleeping with their parents makes them feel safe." Willowpelt chuckled softly before licking between Sorrelpaw's ears. Whitestar hummed as he closed his eyes, sleep soon greeting him.

* * *

Tallstar's P.O.V

Tallstar grunted as light shone behind his eyelids, opening his eyes he could see it was dawn. Climbing to his paws, Tallstar scanned over the horde of sleeping cats that blanketed the temporary camp. Turning towards the camp border he spotted Gorsetail standing guard. Careful as to not step on any sleeping cat, Tallstar made his way to the young warrior. Gorsetail greeted him with a quiet meow which he returned.

"You can stop now Gorsetail, go hunt and get yourself something to eat. Just remember to bring something back for Ashfoot." Tallstar mewed, Gorsetail nodded before disappearing into the undergrowth. Looking around Tallstar could see the clan cats beginning to rise from their slumber and start preparing to leave. Quickly passing by the wakening warriors, Tallstar padded over to the large fern bush where the Medicine cats plus Riftpaw were sleeping. As he expected the Medicine cats were already up and Barkface was checking Riftpaw's sprained paw. The apprentice dipped his head respectfully to Tallstar as Barkface turned to him.

"Riftpaw is doing better, but he'll need to travel with the Queens and kits until his paw is healed completely." Barkface explained as he helped Riftpaw to stand. The apprentice dipped his head to Barkface before leaving.

Tallstar nodded, "That's good, we should be leaving soon after everyone eats and wakes up."

After leaving the Medicine cat to prepare for the journey, Tallstar made his way to the fresh-kill pile. Spotting a decently sized vole he snatched it up with his jaws and made his way to the edge of the camp. As Tallstar ate he reminisced about his time with Sunblaze, how his dear friend had promised him a place in Skyclan should Tallstar be rejected by Windclan. When Shadowclan had chased out Windclan, he had thought about going to Skyclan. But couldn't risk his weakened clan being attacked on the journey. Glancing down at the vole between his paws, Tallstar vaguely remembered that voles were Sunblaze's favorite. Quickly eating the rest of the vole, Tallstar made his way to Whitestar who was speaking to Sandstorm. They were then joined by Leopardstar and Blackstar with their respective deputies.

They waited together for a short time before calling for the clans to leave. The deputies had done a headcount before, so there was little worry about someone falling behind. As the clans began to travel alongside the river, Tallstar fell into step with Leopardstar.

"Tallstar, may I ask a bit of a strange question?" Leopardstar mewed much to his surprise, he hadn't expected her to talk with him. Beside that, he gave a nod, interested in what she had to ask.

"Mistyfoot's daughter Primrosepaw was wondering what makes Skyclan different from the other clans. I'm beginning to wonder the same." Leopardstar explained her amber eyes locking onto his own.

Tallstar was a bit confused at the question at first before he realized what she meant, "You mean the ability that makes them Skyclan, correct?"

She nodded, so Tallstar replied, "Their powerful legs, not strangely long limbs but rather incredibly powerful hind legs that they use to climb trees and catch birds. Sunblaze could jump very high, but it worked alongside the Skyclan's ability to remain well balanced. If you compare Thunderclan's climbing and jumping to that of a Skyclan cat, it would make Thunderclan look like a clumsy kit."

"So they can just jump high and have good balance?" Leopardstar mewed, confused, Tallstar shook his head.

"No, Skyclan -according to Sunblaze- can jump from tree to tree and not fall. They also can hunt by waiting in trees before falling and catching their prey. Sunblaze said that they have very few injuries relating to falls, so my guess is Skyclan has adapted to taking long falls similarly to how Riverclan has thick pelts for swimming." Tallstar explained, the dappled leader beside him nodded.

"Were you and Sunblaze close?" Leopardstar asked.

Tallstar paused for a few moments, "We were. Although we only knew each other for a few moons, he was easily my closest friend."

The conversation ended there, and eventually Leopardstar left to walk with her deputy. Meanwhile, Tallstar couldn't help but think about Sunblaze. Was he even still alive? Sunblaze had mentioned that foxes and floods were a common issue in Skyclan, he'd even told Tallstar the story of how Skyclan was nearly wiped out by rats when Skyclan first came to their new home. The life of a warrior is dangerous and Tallstar couldn't help but doubt that Sunblaze was still alive. Even if Sunblaze was still alive it was likely that he had retired by now. Still, Tallstar hoped that his friend was still alive, it would be nice to share another meal with him.

Suddenly a loud yowl caused the entirety of the clans to stop. Swiftly pushing past the warriors and apprentices, Tallstar came to a stop as he saw a Riverclan queen laying on her side. It was clear that her kits were arriving. Just as Leopardstar arrived beside him the Thunderclan and Riverclan Medicine cats were helping the queen to her paws and moving her away. Barkface was snapping at the surrounding cats to get out of the way as he cleared a path for the queen. Warriors parted a path as the queen was led to a bush nearby. A pelt brushed against Tallstar, causing him to look beside him. It was Ashfoot.

"This is horrible timing. Hopefully we'll be at Skyclan for my kitting." Ashfoot muttered, she had only recently become a queen.

Tallstar nodded in agreement, "This might slow us down considerably, I do hope we reach Skyclan in time for your kits."

Raising his voice Tallstar announced, "We'll stop here until tomorrow!"

Blackstar, who had recently appeared nodded in agreement before ordering a few Shadowclan warriors to check the area. Tallstar knew they wouldn't need to check far since they hadn't traveled very far from the temporary camp from the night before. Deciding to get a drink of water, Tallstar padded away from the group and down the small slope to the river. As he lapped up the cool water, his mind began to drift.

FLASHBACK

_"I'll wait for you at the start of the river, Talltail." Sunblaze purred, a saddened smile lay on his features._

_"If Heatherstar rejects me, I hope Skyclan will accept me. If she allows me to rejoin Windclan, I swear to you Sunblaze, I'll never forget you." Talltail whispered as he touched noses with Sunblaze. The flame-colored tom nodded, green eyes glistening. He turned and began to follow the river as Talltail turned towards the moorland._

_Talltail turned once more just in time for him to see Sunblaze glancing back one last time before disappearing into the undergrowth of the forest._

FLASHBACK END

Tallstar smiled lightly as he sat back by the river. He wondered if Sunblaze would be happy to see him.


	7. Chapter 5

Chapter 5. Eye of the Storm

_**Wow I lied about updating this. Not the 8,000 word chapter I originally had but it's better than nothing. This chapter acts more as a background filler than anything but ****interesting**** nonetheless . Hope you all enjoy, and I'll try to update sooner. I'm might link a picture of what Snakestar looks like in the nest chapter so just a heads up for those wanting a better description of the 5/10 star rating leader of Skyclan.**_

* * *

Fireheart's P.O.V

The gentle breeze rustled Fireheart's fur as she and several others trekked through the windy plains on the far side of Skyclan's territory. Snakestar had assigned her to lead one of the four patrols to find suitable places for the other clans to live. She'd taken the patrol responsible for Windclan, meanwhile Iceclaw, Sharpclaw, and Springleap had taken lead of the other patrols. Turning to the rest of the patrol she called for a rest.

The patrol consisted of Magpiewing, Whitepelt, and Cherrytail. As they all rest, Fireheart scanned the surrounding plains. Distant rolling hills were blanketed in soft grass that was tall enough to tickle her stomach. This area wasn't used by Skyclan due to the lack of cover and very few loners ever pass through. It seemed like a good place for Windclan.

Whitepelt turned to her, "Do you think that Windclan can even use this land? I know the stories that the Elders tell say that they're fast but I kinda doubt that they can live so exposed."

"If the Elders and Medicine Cats say they can then I don't doubt them. But they must be pretty fast if all they do is chase rabbits all day." Fireheart chuckled, Sunblaze's voice echoed through her mind in memory of his stories about Talltail.

"I suppose", Whitepelt hummed as he arched his back.

Magpiewing and Cherrytail got up as well, seeing as they'd rested enough Fireheart turned and began to lead them further into the plains. There was an outcropping of rocks on the side of a hill that seemed to be a good place for a camp not far ahead. Speeding up to a moderate run, Fireheart continued towards the outcrop. Magpiewing followed at her side, careful to not overtake her, Cherrytail and Whitepelt followed a few tail lengths behind.

By the time they'd arrived to the outcrop Cherrytail was gasping for air, the younger she-cat was clearly exhausted. Fireheart felt a light tug at her chest as Cherrytail regained her breath, it was unusual for her to be overexerted so soon. She huffed lightly before studying the outcrop, there was four sections to it that went upward.

"Look around for spots for dens, old burrows and caves that seem stable will do." Fireheart ordered before making her way to the top of the outcrop. Her claws scraped the smooth boulders as she climbed upwards. Once at the top she looked around the plains, a perfect view of the entire territory. Refocusing on the outcrop she noticed a hole between two rocks that leaned against each other. Padding over to the hole, Fireheart scented the air to make sure that there wasn't any adders hiding among the rocks. Ducking her head inside a small cave, she saw parts of the rocks on the walls of the cave. Deciding that it seemed stable enough, she decided that it would make for a good Medicine Cat den or Leader's den as it was far too small to be Nursery and was well protected.

Pulling her head out of the ground, she shook her head to get rid of the dirt that clung to her face. Padding over to the edge of the section she looked down and saw the others still mingling among the rocks. Leaping down to where Magpiewing was she called out to the others.

"Did any of you find places for dens?" Fireheart questioned as they regrouped. Whitepelt nodded and Cherrytail chirped an agreement, "Good, we'll head back to camp and hunt along the way. Clovertail's kits are becoming apprentices today and then there's the warrior ceremony, so we need to be back as soon as we can for the ceremony."

Gathering her patrol, Fireheart led the way back to Skyclan's main territory. With the rainstorms for early Newleaf gone, the return back to camp went without issue. Although the group didn't catch much at least each warrior held something as they entered camp.

Looking around Fireheart spotted Iceclaw who stood beside Snakestar in deep conversation. Dismissing her patrol, Fireheart padded over to the pair.

Iceclaw dipped his head in greeting, "Did you find a campsite for Windclan?"

She nodded before giving Snakestar her attention, the gray splotched tom began to speak again.

"It's been little over two moons since Echosong's prophecy, the clans should be arriving any day now. Fireheart, I want you to patrol the edge of the territory by the river until they arrive." Snakestar sighed before continuing, "Also there's the issue of Harepaw and Tulip-paw's warrior ceremony."

Fireheart tilted her head in confusion as Iceclaw laid his tail on her shoulder.

"Iceclaw has told me that while Tulip-paw has passed her assignment and is ready to become a warrior, Harepaw isn't. You've sat in during the apprentices' training, can you tell me why Harepaw didn't pass his assignment? Because according to Leafdapple, Harepaw simply had a bad day and should be a warrior. With the clans arriving soon Skyclan needs to look strong and indestructible. A warrior that can't even hunt three pieces of prey before sun-high in Newleaf, is no warrior at all. Warriors provide and protect the clan, so tell me why it is that Harepaw seems so far behind his sister and an apprentice three moons younger than him."

The fur was stiff on the back of her neck, Snakestar's voice had been cold and silently angry. Although stress had been weighing on him for the pass few moons Fireheart felt as if he was blaming her for Harepaw's shortcomings.

"Harepaw preforms well in practice, but I have noticed that when he becomes stressed and feels as if he's being pressured, he can slip up. I'm sure with time he'll get over it." Fireheart replied, but by the expression spreading across Snakestar's face that it wasn't the response he wanted.

Standing up quickly with a lashing tail Snakestar snarled, "The life of a warrior is stressful! With the way he's acting he might as well run off like Shortwhisker and Quietflight did!"

"That's enough!" Iceclaw spat, his eyes blazing at the mention of his mother, "Harepaw is a kind and brave cat, maybe he isn't ready to become a warrior just yet but you have no right to compare him to _them_!"

Iceclaw spun and left the two of them alone, Fireheart watched as her brother shoved past Waspwhisker who tried to ask him what was wrong. Turing back to Snakestar she saw that his jaw was dropped and he watched Iceclaw disappear with regretful eyes.

"You shouldn't have said that, Snakestar, you know Quietflight is a sore subject for him." Fireheart chided quietly as the Skyclan leader sat down, hanging his head.

"I know." Snakestar mewed before sighing. Fireheart watched as Snakestar stared at his paws, regretting the words he'd spoken. She was grateful that no one had heard them.

* * *

"Let all cat old enough to catch their own prey join here beneath the Rockpile for a Clan meeting!" Snakestar announced as the clan gathered around. Fireheart sat on a lower rock near him, watching Clovertail pinning Bouncekit by his tail so she could groom a rebellious piece of fur on the kit's head.

As the clan gathered Fireheart glanced over the clan vaguely wondering who would become a mentor.

"Rock-kit step forward" Snakestar mewed, "You have reached the age of six moons and it is time for you to be apprenticed. From this day forth until you receive your warrior name you will be known as Rockpaw, your mentor will be Cherrytail. Cherrytail you are ready to receive your first apprentice, pass down all you know to him."

Fireheart's former apprentice looked up in shock before padding forward to touch noses with Rockpaw. Snakestar smiled lightly before turning to Bouncekit.

"Bouncekit, you have reached the age of six moons and it is time for you to be apprenticed. From this day until you receive your warrior name you will be known as Bouncepaw, your mentor will be Sharpclaw. Sharpclaw you have trained Flarestorm well, and I know you'll make Bouncepaw into a fine warrior." Snakestar stated, Sharpclaw grinned proudly before touching noses with the new apprentice.

Snakestar motioned for Tinykit to come forward, "Tinykit, you have reached the age of six moons and it is time for you to be apprenticed. From this day until you receive your warrior name you will be known as Tinypaw. Your mentor will be Sparrowpelt"

As the ceremony drew to a close the clan cheered loudly for the three new apprentices as the Warrior ceremony began. Fireheart cast a glance in the direction of Iceclaw who sat near the edge of the crowd despite his apprentice being near the center. Her eyes settled upon Tulip-paw as Snakestar called the young she-cat forward.

"I, Snakestar of Skyclan, call upon my warrior ancestors to look down upon this apprentice. They have trained hard to understand the ways of your noble code, and I commend them to you as a warrior in their turn." Snakestar turned to Iceclaw, "Iceclaw, has your apprentice, learned the skills of a warrior? Do they understand the importance of the warrior code?"

Iceclaw stared back for a moment before slowly nodding his head once.

"Tulip-paw, do you promise to uphold the warrior code and to protect and defend your Clan, even at the cost of your life?" Snakestar asked, his attention fixating on the she-cat in question.

Tulip-paw straightened and held her head proudly, "I do."

"Then by the powers of Starclan, I give you your warrior name, from this day forward you will be known as Tuilpseed." Snakestar announced, around them the clan cried out for the new warrior. In the crowd Fireheart spotted Volewhisker yowling the loudest, she smiled- how proud he must be for his daughter.

Fireheart was mildly surprised when Snakestar then motioned for Harepaw, who looked shocked. The meek tom padded forward. As the ceremony for Harepaw, now Harefoot, drew to a close the clan began to disperse. Iceclaw had left the moment after he gave his regards to his now former apprentice, meanwhile Volewhicker was proudly proclaiming his kits as his greatest prides. Fireheart couldn't help but chuckle at the merry warrior's antics, he'd done the same when his mate Meadownose had announced her pregnancy. The young queen met an unfortunate end the prior Leaf-Bare, desperate to help the clan during the hard times had killed her when a sudden blizzard froze her to death while hunting.

Passing by Volewhisker and his two embarrassed kits, Fireheart made her way up the slope and towards the Warrior Den. As she expected upon poking her head in, Iceclaw lay in his nest curled in a way that prevented anyone from seeing his face. Settling in her nest beside his, Fireheart laid her tail over him comfortingly.

The loss of Quietflight had affected Iceclaw his entire life, she'd abandoned him and his littermates out of her own insecurities and a fear that her sickly son Ripplekit would die. Skywatcher had foretold that Ripplekit would never be a warrior, and Fireheart knew that he couldn't be anymore right. Quietflight had disappeared in the dead of night with Ripplekit to the Twoleg Place, never to be seen again. Snakestar's mention of Quietflight's cowardice hit a strong blow to Iceclaw's cold heart. Fireheart knew that in youth Snakestar and Iceclaw never got along, they had shared Morningdew as a mother after Quietflight left and the tensions between them never truly disappeared.

Silently Iceclaw shifted, and Fireheart moved closer to comfort her dearest brother. The light outside the cave began to dim as more and more warriors slipped into the den. Fawnstep entered and took one look at Iceclaw before hauling her nest to the other side of him and plopped down next to him. Together they bundled up their beloved brother between them, which was quite easy considering his size. Soon after they'd settled down Cloudtail entered the den.

"What's this? Snuggle Iceclaw time?" Cloudtail chirped before pulling his nest over to join them, nearby a few laughs rang out as Iceclaw poked out an eye to glare at his nephew. Fireheart's chest lightened as her family settled around her. Skyclan, her family, meant everything to her and no matter what, she'd protect them.


	8. Chapter 6

**I'm putting up the designs for my story here: story/13071941/The-Roaring-Fire-of-Skyclan-character-designs/1**

**Snakestar, Fireheart, Iceclaw, Fawnstep, and Sunblaze are already up, and each one includes some fun facts about the character. I will be taking some requests for designing some other characters, feel free to leave a comment or PM me to have your chosen character uploaded. I'm sorry for the several delays for updating, I've been busy with school and work.**

* * *

Fireheart's P.O.V

"Patchfoot, lead a hunting patrol towards the meadow near the birch grove, take Harefoot and Fawnstep with you." Fireheart ordered, "Rainfur, take a border patrol to the Twoleg Place, take whomever you want."

Both Patchfoot and Rainfur nodded before gathering their patrols and left camp. A few sunrises had past since the ceremonies and everything was progressing well. A quiet call of Fireheart's name caught her attention. Turning her head, she saw Echosong approaching with light steps.

"Echosong, good morning, is there something you need?" Fireheart asked gently, wrapping her tail around her paws.

The beautiful Medicine Cat nodded, "I need to gather more herbs and I was wondering if you could spare me a warrior or two."

Fireheart chuckled lightly at the polite mannerism of Echosong, "Of course, would Shrewtooth do for you?"

Echosong nodded before padding off towards Shrewtooth who was eating near the Elder's Den with Morningdew, who seemed to be telling him a story.

With the patrols sent out and most of the clan wakening and starting their day, Fireheart decided to go observe the apprentice training. Swiftly leaving camp, Fireheart followed the well worn trail towards the training hollow. As she neared the hollow the sounds of the apprentices sparring reached her ears, slipping through the undergrowth Fireheart saw the three newest apprentices attempting to fight Pepperpaw. The speckled she-cat was grinning all the while the smaller apprentices tried to get close without being batted away by her strong hits. Cloudtail and the other mentors stood off to the side, Sharpclaw was watching the apprentices so closely that he didn't even realize Fireheart was there until Cherrytail mewed in greeting. Dipping her head towards the mentors, Fireheart settled next to Cherrytail and her brother. Just then Tinypaw let out a small shriek when Pepperpaw leapt and pinned the tiny apprentice down. However, her brothers immediately lunged as well to tackle Pepperpaw while she was distracted.

It was amusing to watch Pepperpaw promptly shake the new apprentices off as though they were bits of moss. As Rockpaw and Bouncepaw landed in the soft dirt, Sharpclaw called for the sparring to stop. The apprentices jumped at the sight of Fireheart, causing their mentors and Fireheart to chuckle.

"How's training? I hope your mentors are doing well." Fireheart purred lightly.

Tinypaw perked up immediately, "It's amazing! Sparrowpelt took me all over the territory, I even caught my first mouse!"

Fireheart smiled as the other new apprentices added in their experiences with their new mentors. Turning to said mentors, Fireheart nodded before leaving as she had only wanted to check in on them. As they called their goodbyes, she made her way back towards the river to hunt.

The rain had caused the river to rise but thankfully the river had fallen back to normal height, however the mud still clung to Fireheart's limbs as she hunted. Not much later she'd caught two voles and an unlucky fledgling that had gotten stuck in the mud. Shaking off as much mud as she could, Fireheart made her way back to camp.

The camp was filled with the sound of laughing kits and chattering clanmates. Dumping her catch in the fresh-kill pile Fireheart briefly stopped by the nursery to greet Pebblesplash and Clovertail before heading towards Snakestar's den. Inside she found the clan leader in conversation with Rainfur who dipped his head respectfully upon her entry.

"Rainfur has returned with some unsettling news" Snakestar mewed before flicking his tail to Rainfur.

The dappled tom nodded, "During the border patrol we ran into a skirmish of rogues, who then attempted to attack us before the leader called them off. It was Stick's group that had been fighting with Dodge's again. But, while we spoke I realized that their scent matched the scent that we've been picking up in the territory recently. I'm nearly positive that Stick's group is hunting in our land again."

Fireheart frowned at Rainfur's recount, Stick's group had always acted as allies for Skyclan, to hunt on their territory without permission would be to go against their agreement. Fireheart then turned to Snakestar.

"I'll take a patrol to speak with Stick, it'll be better to talk things through instead of outright accusing them. Stick's group has grown recently, it would be unwise to start conflict with them so soon to the other clan's arrival." Fireheart explained, she watched as Snakestar thought over her proposal before he nodded. With a flick of Snakestar's tail, Fireheart motioned for Rainfur to join her before they left the den.

"You sure its them, Rainfur?" Fireheart asked lightly.

"I may be a better fighter than tracker but there's no doubt that the scents are the same." Rainfur confirmed, his pale blue eyes narrow.

He then added, "We could bring Cloudtail, he's the clan's best tracker after all, if anything he'll confirm it."

She nodded in agreement, having already planned on grabbing her nephew for the patrol, "We still have to be careful, Stick has a temper and if he feels cornered, we'll be in a nest of enemies. You go and fetch Cloudtail from the training hollow and fill him in on what's happening, I'll get the others for the patrol"

With a dip of his head, Rainfur turned and left camp as Fireheart approached Whitepelt and Springpelt. After explaining what was going on the two warriors shared a look.

"Could this have to do with Echosong's vision? The clans returning just as tensions with the Twoleg Place cats is beginning to climb?" Springleap questioned, getting to her paws. Whitepelt nodding in agreement with his mate, Fireheart shrugged.

"Stick and his group have always been a bit troublesome but ultimately they are our only allies within the Twoleg Place and they always warn us when rogues are beginning to think of entering our territory. It would be wise to ask them if they are going against our agreement than outright accusing them." Fireheart explained as she began to lead them toward the camp entrance.

Not long after Rainfur returned with Cloudtail and they left towards the Twoleg Place. The patrol chatted lightly, Cloudtail proudly proclaiming that his apprentice was going to be a fantastic warrior in just a few moons. Springleap nudged Whitepelt gently and whispered something in his ear, causing the tom to smile. Fireheart smiled inwardly, her clan was her life, so long as her clanmates were safe a happy she was happy.

The pungent scent of the Twoleg Place grew stronger as they approached, Fireheart led her patrol through the shadows of the Twoleg Place towards Stick's camp. As they neared a familiar call from Cora, a close confidant to Stick.

"Fireheart! It's been a while, are you here to talk with Stick?" Cora asked as she nodded in acknowledgment towards the rest of the patrol. Fireheart nodded and allowed Cora to lead the way to the camp. Upon entering the first thing that she saw was Coal licking his wounds near a few of Stick's other cats. Cora slipped away to get Stick, Cloudtail leaned into Fireheart's ear.

"Rainfur was right, the scent is nearly identical." Cloudtail whispered as he watched the rogues with narrowed eyes. Fireheart nodded as Cora appeared with Stick from behind a pile of Twoleg trash.

After exchanging pleasantries Fireheart asked Stick to move the conversation to a more private area.

"Why? Anything that you need to say can be said to all of us." Stick mewed, tipping his head to the side.

Fireheart sighed, discreetly motioning for her warriors to prepare themselves before responding, "Several of my warriors have caught rogue scent in our territory, and believe it's your cats that have been entering. While Skyclan has the prey to share during-"

"I'll stop you right there," Stick grunted, fur rising, "None of my cats would dare go against our agreement with Skyclan, we have enough going on with Dodge"

Stick sneered, "If anything Dodge is probably sending cats into our boarders to get our scent and leaving it in Skyclan to cause trouble."

Fireheart nodded, "I understand that Stick but let me finish. Skyclan _usually_ has prey to share during Greenleaf but the other clans are returning, and Skyclan's territory will change and the other clans will most likely not allow rogues in their territory. I'm sure you and Snakestar will be able to come to a new agreement with the other leaders when they arrive. I only wanted to give you a warning so that your cats aren't harmed due to a misunderstanding."

Stick blinking looking surprised, as did several of his other cats.

"The other clans? The same ones that chased out the old Skyclan?" Cora asked looking concerned. Rainfur answered before Fireheart could.

"The original clan territories are being destroyed by Twolegs just like Skyclan's was so long ago. Starclan commanded us to help them." Rainfur replies earning some unsettled looks.

"Stick, I'll report to Snakestar about your explanation but to be aware that if one of your cats is disobeying you, we will alert you immediately." Fireheart stated with a firm voice before motioning for her patrol to follow.

Fireheart led them back to Skyclan territory as quickly as she could, the Twoleg Place is unsafe. As they neared the border a voice called out for them.

"Wait! Wait just a moment please!"

They turned and a beautiful dark red she-cat ran to them, it was Red, Stick's daughter. Fireheart looked at the young she-cat, about Tuilpseed's age catch her breath before speaking.

"Can I join Skyclan?" Red asked suddenly, Whitepelt made a strange noise.

Fireheart blinked, "What."

"Oh! Not right now but sometime else, please don't tell my father." Red pleaded, her tail lashing nervously.

"That's not my decision Red, you'll have to ask Snakestar. Besides why would you want to?" Fireheart mewed, confusion settling in her mind.

Red shuffled her paws, "There's a tom in Dodge's group called Harley, we want to be mates but Stick won't let him join us because he's apart of Dodge's group, and I can't join him unless I want Stick to attack Dodge's camp. If Harley and I join Skyclan we'd be fine. Skyclan's huge and Dodge wouldn't care if Harley left, and Stick wouldn't be able to do anything without going against the agreement."

Fireheart frowned, Stick was absurdly possessive of Red, he wouldn't hesitate to try and attack Skyclan with his group to get Red back. It was unhealthy. But she couldn't help but pity her, Red was full grown and yet still treated as a kit.

"I'll give your request to Snakestar for you Red, I'll give you his answer later, but I can't make any promises." Fireheart softly responded, Red beamed.

"Thank you, Fireheart, thank you!" Red mewed before dipping her head gratefully and swiftly departing. Behind Fireheart, Rainfur sighed.

"Poor she-cat, I'd never treat Mintkit or Sagekit like Stick treats her." The dappled tom muttered, Fireheart uttered her agreement before taking her patrol back into Skyclan territory. The sky was beginning to darken, and she could tell that reporting to Snakestar would take some time.

Entering camp, Fireheart dismissed the patrol before heading into Snakestar's den. Inside the den was her leader and half-sister. Pebblesplash looked up at Fireheart from her spot laying next to Snakestar, with a sigh the gray queen left without a word. Snakestar sat up in his nest and motioned for Fireheart to sit. Curling her tail over her paws, Fireheart dove into her report from Stick's explanation to Red's request. By the time she'd finished and left the Leader's den it was dark, Snakestar had told her that he'd think over Red's request and told Fireheart to increase patrolling at the Twoleg Place border. As she climbed up the slope to the Warrior's den Fireheart could help but feel her skin prickle, the sensation of being watched sunk into her. With narrowed eyes she scanned the Gorge and cliffside, glance toward the guards at the top of the Gorge she saw that neither of them was looking at her. Unsettled Fireheart continued to the Warrior's den and laid down in her nest beside Iceclaw and Fawnstep.

* * *

_Small eyes watched the feline below, low chattering whispered around as small claws gripped the earth below. In a flash the small eyes vanished into the undergrowth unnoticed._


End file.
